Forum posts made by principessa

The proposals are that volunteer teachers who pass screening and training protocols be allowed to carry on campus.

One can generally assume that people who volunteer to do something in fact want to do that something.

To the best of my knowledge, no one is suggesting that anyone be required to be armed yet I keep seeing people argue against such a plan as you just did.

I'm not sure where that idea is coming from. Is there any chance you could point us to your source for that information?

I understand your point. When I have heard this suggested by various politicians on television, the suggestion was a blanket one, and the ideas of training and volunteering are not usually mentioned. Even with these caveats, I still think it is a bad idea.

You want my guns ?? Come get them And while you are at it take the bullets first,, Dont be so fast to judge all because of a few,, The media sensationalizing every shooting doesn't help. ..

Are you suggesting that mass shootings should not be covered by the press? They have mostly refrained from mentioning the names of the perpetrators, so the goal of achieving fame is thwarted but surely people should know what has happened. Not paying attention will not bring the dead back and will only serve to trivialize these murders as not worthy of time and attention. Maybe it would also undermine public pressure for gun control, which would please the NRA.

As an aside, unrelated to the above post and comment, why do people keep suggesting that teachers be armed? Has anyone asked them if they want to be armed? Do they not have enough to do teaching their students?

If you are against sacrificing innocent lives, how can you support allowing all of this to continue? How many are killed by guns owned by ‘responsible’ owners’? You either support the guns or you support the victims. Can’t have it both ways

This.

I don't understand how the well regulated militia mentioned in the Second Amendment morphed into the right for any and everyone to own weapons meant to kill as many people as possible quickly and efficiently. Wake up America. Your children deserve to go to school without thinking about being shot. How many times does this have to happen before things change. What do you value more: your children, families, co-workers and friends or the right to own an arsenal worthy of a criminal in a banana republic?

Someone has to become a profile in courage and champion the disarming of the America.

There is some irony in having the idea of involuntary celibates emerge at the same time as the #metoo movement. I think that the bottom line in both cases is that women do not owe men anything sexual in any form unless they want it too. The ICs should spend a little more time understanding how to speak to and interact with women rather than approaching them with an entitlement to sex. The difference between them and the Harvey Weinsteins of the world is that those unmasked by the #metoo movement is more often than not the latter were in a position of power over their victims, in a position to insist and threaten that their lives would be impacted negatively if they did not comply. Although these men may be at different ends of the power spectrum, understanding women as human beings rather than prey seems to be the answer to both.

I have worked in male-dominated environments and have my own stories. The men who treated me with respect, talked to me and listened to me, supported my work and expression of opinions (whether they agreed with them or not) are the men who became friends, and in a few cases more than friends. I think that I am like many women in saying that the way to break down some barriers is to make me laugh. That almost always works.

Calling themselves involuntary celibates denies their responsibility for their own behaviour and its consequences. They imagine themselves to be victims of the women who have denied them. Maybe some introspection and perhaps some therapy would help them forge normal relationships. Seething anger against women is not the answer.

Through the first world western democracies, Trump's tenure has impacted on the view of the US negatively. These countries are the historical allies of the US. Trump has given encouragement for the anti-immigrant nationalist movements in these countries as well as in eastern Europe and some Asian countries particularly those headed by leaders with tendencies toward demagoguery and tyranny. His pronouncements about America first, fake news, and attacks on the free press have given them leave to mimic him. This mirrors the normalizing of crass and ignorant remarks and views both outside and within the US because of Trump's example. Many journalists have been harassed and killed under the umbrella of "fake news" in non-democratic countries.

It will take some time to repair the damage done internationally. The Europeans and others such as Aussies and Canadians are learning to work around him. The US can no longer claim to lead in the world or be the example of leadership that embodies the values in the Constitution. The lights have gone out in what Reagan called the shining city on the hill. The idea of American exceptionalism has sometimes overstepped in the past in seeming to say that Americans were better than the rest of the world, but as an ideal of democracy and a free society, it no longer reaches the mark.

Do you agree with Kanye West that slavery is a choice? Maybe you don’t agree with what he said exactly, but do you find any merit to the idea that slaves could have done more to better their lot in life during slavery?

Anyone taking Kanye West's views seriously needs to give their head a shake. This remark is the ultimate example of blaming the victim. I suppose he has views on other weighty subjects. I suggest that people read reputable writers of history rather than his twitter feed. Maybe this is another instance of the dumbing down of America.

Ten people are dead. The injured are still in the ICU in hospital. Families are shattered. A seven-year-old boy is now an orphan because his mother was killed. Bystanders and first responders will never forget what they saw. The rest of us in Toronto are trying to be extra kind and thoughtful to others as the antidote to the hatred of this individual and what he did in this wonderful place.

Can we please keep the gun arguments in another more appropriate thread. There was no gun used here, not even by the police officer who made the arrest.

I suppose the gun did it and the NRA is to blame for the van running into folks.....im really surprised someone's not on the wagon to ban vans....

NOLAHotGal already made said this about banning vans in another thread. I told her what I am about to tell you: it is a tasteless remark given that ten have died and fifteen or sixteen injured.

The NRA had nothing to do with it because this is Canada and we are not a clone of the US. The accused did not have a gun as they are more difficult to buy and own in Canada. The carnage might have been much worse if he had been armed. The police officer who arrested him managed to defuse the situation without firing a shot, another difference from what often happens in the US.

I posted this thread to inform people of what had happened and for their memories of Toronto if they had any, and generally for messages of support after a tragedy. I was not expecting cheap political shots so soon in the aftermath. Perhaps I was naive.

It's sad for the families and the whole world. Ten people dead because one idiot wanted to prove some kind of point?

He was angry because he was not successful with women. Here is what the NYTimes reported about this:

A posting that Sergeant Gibson said the suspect had made minutes before the rampage praised Elliot Rodger, who killed six people in a May 2014 rampage in Isla Vista, Calif., before shooting himself.

Mr. Rodger had posted a YouTube video describing his rage that women had rejected him and that he was a virgin at age 22.

The Facebook posting by Mr. Minassian praised “incels,” or involuntary celibates, a term used in a Reddit group where men vented frustrations that tipped into misogyny.

“The Incel Rebellion has already begun!” the posting stated. “We will overthrow all the Chads and Stacys! All hail Supreme Gentleman Elliot Rodger!”

Mr. Rodger had referred to men who are successful with women as “Chads” and to the unattainable women who rejected him as “Stacys.” Mr. Rodger had also called himself an “incel.”

Last November, Reddit banned a community dedicated to “incels,” which had 40,000 members, and had included posts lauding the rape of women. Some posts were titled “all women are sluts” and “reasons why women are the embodiment of evil.”

Canadian news is often not on the front page in other countries in the world. I thought you should all know what has happened here yesterday.

It was a horrible day here. Toronto is now the newest member of a club no one wants to join. Someone with a van mowed down pedestrians walking on the street on a beautiful spring day. Just like what happened in Nice, France, in London, in New York, and elsewhere.

Kudos to the police, fire, EMTs and others who responded quickly to help. The perpetrator was apprehended without a shot fired despite his taunting the PO. Typical Canadian reserve and understatement. The latest number of deaths is ten, and I believe at least sixteen people were injured.

This is a wonderful city: beautiful, diverse, open, and peaceful. People are kind and generous. We will survive this and tend to those impacted by it. The hate that was the genesis of this attack will not root here.

So now we have to meltdown all the white vans, or should it be all vans? At least 10 dead in Canada, no AR-15, no 45, no guns at all.

Brandie

I live in Toronto. Your flippant remark is tasteless in the circumstances.

It has been a horrible day here. Toronto is now the newest member of a club no one wants to join. Someone with a van mowed down pedestrians walking on the street on a beautiful spring day. Just like what happened in Nice, France, in London, in New York, and elsewhere.

Kudos to the police, fire, EMTs and others who responded quickly to help. The perpetrator was apprehended without a shot fired despite his taunting the PO. Typical Canadian reserve and understatement. The latest number of deaths is ten, and I believe at least sixteen people were injured.

This is a wonderful city: beautiful, diverse, open, and peaceful. People are kind and generous. We will survive this and tend to those impacted by it. The hate that was the genesis of this attack will not root here.

This is what some people are ready to believe in the US today. He is a purveyor of conspiracy theories and lies to an audience ready to eat them up rather than actually doing some reading and thinking on their own. The world has changed in ways difficult for them to accept and explain. So this is a way of making sense of it as counterintuitive as that is to anyone with an IQ higher than their body temp.

To say that the massacre of small children and their teachers at Sandy Hook is a hoax is not just patently untrue, but is a despicable lie and disrespectful to all the parents and families who have lost someone. He is beneath contempt, or perhaps an intellectual in Trumpworld.

Your friend must decide for herself to take back control of her life and that of her children. She needs support in a few ways. There are support groups for abused wives and families and shelters for those who must leave their homes and have nowhere else to go. She may well need counselling or therapy from an appropriate medical professional. She needs to consult with a family law lawyer to understand her rights in this situation and take the necessary legal steps for support and custody of her children and a separation agreement or divorce. She will have to separate herself financially from her husband and establish credit and bank accounts of her own if she does not already have them. If her husband is violent, she may have to get a restraining order to keep him away from her and the children. It may be necessary to either deny him access to the children or allow it only under strictly supervised conditions. This is all complicated and harrowing for someone going through it with an abusive spouse. No matter how well meaning, friends can only offer moral support, but the decision and carrying through with it are all up to her.

You have given her good advice in telling her to document everything. A journal kept with notes written contemporaneously of her spouse's words, behaviour, actions are a good record for her lawyer and the court. Like many such men, her husband revels in exerting power and control over her and the children. Leaving for good can be a difficult decision and can have some peril for her, but there is a lot of support in the community for women in this position. You can help her find these resources, but again, the decision to act is hers alone.

The marches are wonderful, but have to be followed by action. People need to morph this into votes for the right candidates. Everyone of the appropriate age should be registered to vote. Registration drives should be organized in every state and at every school, college and university. Candidates in the pocket of the NRA should be given a reason to regret taking that money and supporting that organization in blocking reasonable limits on guns and appropriate vetting of owners and users. There is a midterm election in November. Volunteer for the candidate in your district who will support an end to the NRA's influence. Give time to canvass and get out the vote. Make your presence known. Change is possible. Expose those who take large amounts from the NRA. Lobby against candidates and businesses that support them.

Young people led their elders to end the war in Viet Nam and they can lead again to end the proliferation of guns in the US. No weapons of war should be legal. No one with a criminal record or a history of domestic violence should own a gun. If people who have certain illnesses must be reported to the authorities by their doctors to remove their licences and ability to drive, then there must be a way of doing the same with those whose mental instability is connected to violence and a wish to perpetrate it. Not everyone with mental health issues falls into this category. Most have normal neuroses and even manic depression and bipolar conditions can be stabilized by medications. You cannot arrest someone before they actually commit a crime, but you can find ways to limit their ability to arm themselves as these shooters have done. There is no perfect solution. But every bit of change that moves in the right direction is progress. Take enough steps and actions and it adds up to enormous change. The NRA will say there is no solution that works. Tell them that the perfect should not stand in the way of the good. Every life thereby saved would make even incremental change worthwhile. Change Congress by electing representatives who will move forward on gun control. Use the power of the ballot box. Every legitimate poll says that the vast majority of Americans want gun control. Make this coming election the NRA's worst nightmare.

This has nothing to do with guns. This has everything to do with people who are mental.

This is about guns and mental health, together and separately. We can hold two thoughts in our heads at the same time. Guns should be controlled in the US as they are in other developed countries. At the least assault weapons should be banned along with other weapons that are meant only to kill people rather than be used for hunting - for all except the armed forces and certain segments of law enforcement. People with mental health issues should not be permitted to purchase, own, or possess guns. Doctors must report those who suffer from diseases which disable them from driving safely. Why can this not happen regarding guns and mental health issues?

This interestingly combines two areas where the US differs from other western first world countries: gun control and healthcare, including mental healthcare. The idea that there is an inherent right to own weapons is anathema in other countries, but not in the US. And the idea that healthcare is a for profit industry rather than a right is solely American. Both are the opposite of what they ought to be.

We have been here before. We will be here again. If I hear one more politician say he sends thoughts and prayers and that this is not the time to talk about gun control, I will scream. When will Americans demand that their lives and those of their children are more important than the NRA and the right to bear arms? When will politicians have the courage to face down the NRA and make change happen? When will enough be enough? It is not a matter of better mental health care or gun control alone. Both are necessary as is a societal change in America. There are many things that have to be done. Any progress on this is better than none, but the NRA will block any form of gun control and those who receive their money in Congress and at state level will not act. Who has to die for the response to be more than platitudes?

I naively thought that after the killing of six-year-olds and their teachers and administrators at Sandy Hook that America would finally have had enough. I was wrong. Americans' love affair with guns has to be put to an end but I no longer have faith that it will happen.

I don't see it as abuse. When they get old enough to make their on decisions they can. It is the parents obligation to streer their children in the direction they think best. There are probably as many professionals that believe it is better to put them in therapy as there are that believe they should not be put in therapy. My statements support the parents making the decisions for their children. Not the government.

Brandie

With respect, you do not seem to understand that being gay/lesbian is not a choice, but something that is hard wired in individuals just the same way as being straight. It is the same as being born with blue or brown or hazel eyes. You cannot convert gays with therapy any more than straights could be converted. So this is not something for parents to direct or change, but rather just to accept and support. If parents' religious convictions conflict with this, they will have to make a choice between religious dogma and love for their child, which for most parents comes without conditions. As to your view that this is government interference, keep in mind that sexual orientation is a protected right under the constitutions and jurisprudence of all western democracies.

I have already posted twice with my opinion on this, so I will not repeat what I have said.

I wonder if anyone thought about irony when Grace was chosen as her pseudonym. Grace is one thing she has not displayed in this situation. As Burquette said, the fact that Aziz has not revealed her identity tells us something about him. He is the one behaving with grace right now.

She gave and received oral sex to be polite? It’s not “probably not”. It is not even close to being “rape or sexual assault on a par with what other women have suffered” and it’s an insult to them that you would even suggest it. She participated willingly. He stopped when she asked him to but she continued to participate in more sexual activity several times during the date. She was free to leave at any time and she said he didn’t force her to do anything. There was no assault. He didn’t break the law, so if anyone is in the wrong here, it’s the woman. She’s sullied his reputation.

Being polite my ass. Who has sex to be polite?

Pigs must be flying. I agree with you.

I think she wants her fifteen minutes of fame, especially now that she can get on the #metoo wagon. Her behaviour makes women into mute objects rather than adults with free will and mouths to speak for themselves. She wanted to latch on to some of the light attached to him. To expect romance with someone you don't know and willingly undress and engage in oral sex (both ways) is disingenuous. It was a hookup, not a Valentine card. She knew it and regretted it afterward. He did nothing without her consent, even if it was silent. She could have left at any point, including immediately after dinner and the tragedy of getting the wrong wine. She sounds immature, entitled, and displays a complete lack of self-awareness. And she had no compunction about anonymously making these allegations public, naming him. Not cool.

I agree with those who say that she had chances to leave and that she participated willingly in sexual activity. I read her account of the evening. I think that she wanted to hook up with a Hollywood star and had some regret about what transpired afterward, but unless Ansari had ESP he could not have known. She certainly could have gone home after dinner, or not undressed, or not taken part in oral sex. This was not romance. It was a hook up. She knew what she was signing up for and her silence was consent. She was not drunk or drugged or incapacitated in any way. She should have used her voice and taken responsibility for herself. If this was the worst night of her life she is a very lucky young woman.

I consider myself a feminist, but I am older than this young woman. I object to this brand of feminism that infantilizes women by allowing them to abdicate taking responsibility for their actions and words or lack thereof. Are we to go back to fainting couches and clutching our pearls?

Something else that bothers me about this is exposing him in this situation while maintaining her anonymity.

Doug Jones has won. This is the first time a Dem has won in Alabama in 25 years. It shows that there is a line across which people will not go even in this environment of tribalism in US politics. Decency won. Trump trounced Clinton here. It can be seen as a rejection of a terrible candidate but also a message for Trump who supported him. I suspect the GOP is relieved that they will not have to figure out what to do with Moore had he won.

If this can happen in such a red state, it is good news for the Dems in 2018.

Wrong! While I often agree with what Damon says, I never agree with how he combines that with ad hominem insults and attacks. You may have noticed that he treated me like that too. The reason I'm not mentioning him, is that he is not whining about being attacked himself. Damon does not seem to expect to be treated any better than he treats his opponents. Ckc obviously does and that's what I addressed.

I've gone over a number of threads and apart from one post where someone said he didn't believe she's a lawyer, I failed to find any real personal attacks on her. Her claim that she is bullied and abused is simply unfounded and, considering her own attitude, hypocritical.

Thank you. This is a place where strong opinions are expressed. That is the point. It is not a place for personal attacks and vitriolic name calling instead of a reasoned argument to express your opinions. Doing that to others and then complaining that you are being treated badly is disingenuous and hypocritical. After initially tangling with her and being subjected to comments like Trump would not travel to Canada to grab my pussy, I would not engage again, not because I was cowed by her venom, but because it was not worth my time and attention. She showed us who she is. I believe her.

I have both stainless steel and enamelled cast iron. The stainless steel is great for everyday use and you should try to get a steamer insert for one of the pots, if not one that fits several of them. The enameled cast iron (like Le Creuset or Staub) is expensive but is a lifetime investment. A large covered pot is good for all kinds of braises, soups, and cooknig in large quantities. What they call a braiser is good for roasts and things like paella and risotto and a grill pan is great for doing just that when it is too cold to go out and barbeque or if you live in an apartment building and cannot do so. The enameled cast iron does not need to be seasoned, holds heat and is easy to clean. It is worth saving for them and buying piece by piece.